JP2000027887A - Clutch assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To perform a gear change without using a clutch pedal by providing the inner ring of a clutch assembly on the input shaft of a transmission together with a clutch mechanism locked in the engaged state of an engine and opened in the overrun state of the engine. SOLUTION: A two-arm distortion lever 42 is arranged between friction discs 22, 30, 24, 38 of a main clutch or overrun clutch, and the distortion lever 42 is pivotally moved around a radial central axis 44. The inside end 43 of the distortion lever 42 is supported on the reverse side of the friction discs 24, 38 of the overrun clutch opposed to the opposite side to an actuator 40. The outside end 45 of the distortion lever 42 is in contact with the friction discs 22, 30 of the main clutch, and operated by a clutch spring 32. Since the distortion lever 42 is present, the main clutch is disconnected against the force of the clutch spring 32 when the overrun clutch is connected.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a clutch assembly for a vehicle, and more particularly, to a clutch assembly for a vehicle capable of shifting without using a clutch pedal.

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a clutch assembly for a motor vehicle. A typical clutch assembly is provided on an outer ring that is rotationally driven by a vehicle engine, an inner ring that is coupled to transmit the input shaft of the transmission of the transmission, and torque, and on the outer and / or inner ring. Disengaged clutch discs or friction discs (layers or lamellae) under frictional engagement and increasing slippage.
amella)).

[0003] Clutch assemblies are common in motor vehicles with manual transmissions. The clutch is actuated by the driver via the clutch pedal when accelerating the vehicle from a standstill or shifting gears.

[0004] In the synchronous manual transmission, a synchronous mechanism for adjusting the gear speed to the rotational speed of the engine when shifting and changing gears is used. These synchronizing mechanisms only perform their function when torque is no longer applied to the input shaft of the transmission, which is why in conventional systems the clutch must be operated to shift gears.

[0005] Torque converters for automatic transmissions have not yet been universally accepted for use in automobiles.
Such torque converters are said to further increase manufacturing costs, result in loss of propulsion, and further increase fuel consumption, and are, in principle, always acceptable to purchasers of small to medium-sized vehicles. is not.

[0006] From an ecological point of view, increased fuel consumption means increased emissions. This is also undesirable. The driver's attitude to the automatic transmission is also affected by psychological factors. Some drivers think that shifting gears manually is sporty and wants to control their car directly. Many drivers also believe that it is important to be able to tow their own vehicle without lifting the vehicle's drive axle off the ground.

[0007] Semi-automatic transmissions for motor vehicles are known, which allow the driver of the vehicle to shift gears without operating the clutch. However, according to the state of the art, these transmissions require expensive sensor and actuator technology. Accordingly, such transmissions are complicated and sometimes have slow shifting behavior.

[0008]

In drive transmission designs that are widely used internationally in the manufacture of automobiles, a clutch assembly is provided between an engine and a manual synchro transmission, the transmission of the manual synchro transmission. It is located on the input axis. It is an object of the present invention to automate the function of such a clutch assembly while maintaining the advantages and characteristics of the above design to a maximum, such that the clutch assembly is only required as a starting clutch to reduce the gear. It is to provide a clutch assembly that is not needed to change.

[0009]

The above objects can be achieved by a clutch assembly as described herein, wherein the inner ring of the clutch assembly engages the engine. It is mounted on the transmission input shaft with a clutch mechanism that locks while in the state and opens while the engine is in the overrun state.

The present invention relates to a clutch assembly for a motor vehicle, wherein an outer ring rotatably driven by a vehicle engine, an inner ring linked to an input shaft of a transmission of a transmission for transmitting torque, and the outer ring. At least one friction member provided on the ring and / or the inner ring for frictionally engaging and retracting as slippage increases, the inner ring engaging while the engine is in engagement; The engine is configured to be mounted on the transmission input shaft together with a clutch element adapted to open while in an overrun condition.

In the clutch mechanism of the present invention, when the engine is overrun, the driving torque of the engine is reduced so that no torque is applied to the input shaft of the transmission. In this case, it is possible to shift the gear without operating the clutch. When the engine torque is increased again, the clutch element re-establishes a torque transmitting connection with the transmission while the engine is engaged.

The clutch element can be shifted electromagnetically by the auxiliary means. It is also possible to use an automatically shifted clutch element, preferably in the form of a freewheel mechanism.

It is known to arrange a freewheel mechanism between a vehicle engine and a transmission. In 1961, Springer Verlag
lag) published by Karlsruhe (Karls)
ruhe). Edited by Professor Kollman, "Constructions Bucher"
Karl Stoel in the "Struktionsbucher" series
zle) and Sigwald Hart (Sigwalt)
Hart) Technical Book "Freilauf Kupplung
Belechungund Construction (Freila
ufkupplungen Berichnung u
ND Konstruktion) ”on pages 129 to 1
On page 32, the above-mentioned apparatus is described for use with an Auto Union DKW equipped with a two-stroke engine. Only under certain conditions was the engine braked while the engine was in overrun, thus the engine was disconnected by freewheeling. In principle, it was thus possible to make a shift in a synchronized transmission without stepping on the clutch.

[0014] In contrast, a particular feature of the present invention is that the inner ring of the clutch assembly, together with the freewheel, is mounted directly on the transmission input shaft. That is, the freewheel mechanism is integrated with the inner clutch ring. This arrangement maintains the design of the drive transmission system that is widely used internationally in the manufacture of vehicles and assembles the clutch assembly as an accessory without additional structural extension in axial direction. This allows the clutch to be used as a starting clutch, rather than requiring the clutch to shift gears.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the engine brake cannot be applied because the freewheel mechanism opens during the overrun condition. However, in order to be able to apply the engine brake in certain driving situations, for example driving on long downhills,
In a preferred refinement of the invention, either a blocking freewheel mechanism or a special overrun clutch that connects the engine to the transmission input shaft so as to transmit torque is provided.

According to the above technical reference, the freewheel mechanism of the auto union DKW device can be blocked when the torques of the engine and the transmission are synchronized, so that the engine brake can be applied during the overrun condition. Was. The preferred special clutch according to the invention, in contrast, is characterized by improved maneuverability and smoother action.

In a first embodiment of the present invention, the overrun clutch has a lamella (friction disc or clutch plate), which is on the outer ring of the clutch assembly and on the inner ring of the overrun clutch. It is arranged. The inner ring of the overrun clutch is located on the input shaft of the transmission together with a freewheel mechanism that opens during engine engagement and closes during engine overrun. Have been.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the overrun clutch has a friction disk, which is disposed on the friction disk or clutch plate of the overrun clutch and a transmission input shaft, and It straddles the freewheel mechanism of the assembly.

The clutch assembly and the overrun clutch can be independently operated by, for example, two operation levers. However, operation of the overrun clutch is preferably performed by operating the clutch assembly such that when the clutch is disengaged, the overrun clutch is engaged and when the clutch is engaged, the overrun clutch is disengaged. This type of clutch operation features simple actuator technology. The overrun clutch is preferably engaged when the displacement lift begins and the clutch assembly disengages.

Since the operation of the mechanism for releasing the connection is complicated, the complete automation of the clutch is preferable in terms of the function as the starting clutch. Such a clutch assembly may be either dry or wet.

[0021]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The drive engine has a flywheel 10 that is driven to rotate. Engine torque is transmitted to the transmission input shaft 12 of the transmission via the clutch assembly 8.

As shown in FIG. 1, the flywheel 10 of the clutch assembly 8 includes an outer mounting flange member 14, an outer jacket ring member 16, and a front plate member 18.
And an outer clutch ring having an inner jacket ring member 20 bent inward. The outer jacket ring member 16 and the inner jacket ring member 20 each have a lamella (friction disk or clutch plate) 22, 24, which projects radially inward.

The inner clutch ring member 28 is mounted together with the freewheel mechanism 26 on the engine side of the transmission input shaft 12. The ring member 28
Has a friction disk (or disk layer) 30 projecting radially outward and interacting with the steel friction disk 22 of the outer jacket ring member 16 in a comb-like manner. Friction disks 22, 3
Numeral 0 is previously pulled by the connection spring 32 and frictionally engaged.

The main clutch and the overrun clutch are operated via an actuator 40 arranged on the gear side.
The actuator is adapted to retract axially into the clutch housing. Actuator 40 acts on friction disks 24, 38 of the overrun clutch to move the friction disks to a frictionally engaged position.

A two-arm flexure lever 42 is located between the friction disks 22, 30, 24, 38 of the main clutch or overrun clutch, and pivots about a radial center axis 44. I do. The inner end 43 of the flexure lever 42 is supported on the back side of the friction disks 24, 38 of the overrun clutch facing the side opposite to the actuator 40. The outer end 45 of the flexure lever 42 is in contact with the lamellas 22 and 30 of the main clutch, and
2 actuated.

The presence of the bending lever 42 causes the main clutch to be disengaged against the force of the clutch spring 32 when the overrun clutch is engaged. FIG. 2 illustrates the torque capacity of the main clutch and the overrun clutch of FIG. 1 depending on the working path. High torque capability means that the clutch is engaged and torque is transmitted via the clutch. Zero torque capability means that the clutch is disengaged and no torque is transmitted through the clutch.

As shown in FIG. 3, the clutch assembly 8 '
Has an outer overrun clutch ring 48, which comprises a steel lamella or friction disk layer 46, which is the outermost friction disk of the main clutch on the gear side. 50. The friction disk 52 of the overrun clutch is mounted directly on the input shaft 12 of the transmission. According to the torque capacity diagrams of FIG. 4, the overrun clutch straddles the freewheel mechanism 26 of the main clutch across a part of the working path while the main clutch is disengaged.
The transmission torque of the overrun clutch is the same as the transmission torque of the main clutch.

While the best mode for carrying out the invention has been described in detail herein, those skilled in the relevant descriptive fields of the invention will appreciate the practice of the invention as defined in the appended claims. It is self-evident that various alternative designs and embodiments exist. All such embodiments and modifications that meet the claims and spirit of the invention are intended to be included within the scope of the invention.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of one half of a first clutch assembly.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a relation torque capacity of the clutch assembly of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of one half of a second clutch assembly.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a relation torque capacity of the clutch assembly of FIG. 3;

[Explanation of symbols]

8 clutch assembly, 8 'clutch assembly, 10 flywheel, 12 transmission input shaft, 1
4 outer mounting flange member, 16 outer jacket ring member, 18 front plate member, 20 inner jacket ring member, 22, 24, 30, 38 friction disc, 2
6, 34 freewheel mechanism, 28 inner clutch ring, 32 connecting spring, 36 overrun clutch mechanism, 40 actuator, 44 radial center axis, 50, 52 friction disk.

Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Karl Heinz Dieter Bauer Germany 76676 Graben-Neudorf, Taunusstrasse 10 (72) Inventor Jürgen Felix Chlor 68775 Ketsch, Ur Mengasse 1

Claims (13)

[Claims] 1. A clutch assembly for an automobile, comprising: an outer ring rotatably driven by a vehicle engine; an inner ring linked to transmit an input shaft of a transmission of a transmission; and the outer ring; And / or provided on said inner ring for frictional engagement;
At least one friction member that retracts as sliding increases, the inner ring engaging with a clutch element adapted to engage while the engine is in engagement and open while the engine is in overrun. A vehicle clutch assembly mounted on the transmission input shaft. 2. The clutch assembly according to claim 1, wherein said clutch element is shifted externally. 3. The clutch assembly according to claim 1, wherein said clutch element shifts automatically. 4. The clutch assembly according to claim 3, wherein said clutch element is a freewheel mechanism. 5. The clutch assembly according to claim 4, wherein said freewheel mechanism is blockable. 6. The clutch assembly of claim 1, wherein said overrun clutch couples said engine to transmit torque to an input shaft of said transmission while in an overrun condition. 7. The overrun clutch has a friction member on the outer ring of the clutch assembly and an inner ring of the overrun clutch, and the inner overrun clutch ring is in an engaged state of the engine. 7. The transmission is mounted on an input shaft of the transmission with a freewheel mechanism adapted to be open and closed while the engine is in an overrun condition.
A clutch assembly according to claim 1. 8. The clutch assembly according to claim 6, wherein said overrun clutch is mounted on an input shaft of said clutch assembly and said transmission so as to straddle said freewheel mechanism of said clutch assembly. . 9. The clutch assembly according to claim 6, wherein said clutch assembly and said overrun clutch are independently operable. 10. The operation of the overrun clutch, when the clutch is disengaged, the overrun clutch is engaged,
7. The clutch assembly according to claim 6, wherein the clutch assembly is operated by operating the clutch assembly so that when the clutch assembly is engaged, the overrun clutch is disengaged. 11. The clutch assembly according to claim 10, wherein said engagement of said overrun clutch occurs when displacement begins to disengage said clutch assembly. 12. The clutch assembly according to claim 1, wherein said clutch assembly is dry. 13. The clutch assembly according to claim 1, wherein said clutch assembly is wet.